Project Chaos
by The-Caitiff
Summary: Harry tries to kill himself and discovers just how powerful he really is. Mayhem and police chases ensue as out hero sets out to explore his awakened strength and piss off as many people as he can. Nihilist and Libertine influences abound. Harrymulti ship
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer; I still do not own Harry Potter or the related characters and settings.

A/N; I fiddled with a similar idea a while back and posted part of this earlier in the week. I thought I was done with this but apparently not. Figure four to five chapters. Older versions have been removed for consistency's sake.

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"Hang on Sirius, I'm coming too," Harry whispered as he sank down into his bath. The water was warm and he could barely feel a thing as the broken piece of Sirius' mirror cut through his wrists. He watched in fascination as his life blood flowed into the bath and tinted the waters pink.

He leaned his head back on the side of the tub and closed his eyes. He was so comfortable and he felt so tired. Some part of him knew that was because he was dieing but he really didn't care. He welcomed the misty comfort of death. Already he felt nothing in his feet and hands, just a cool sensation like a velvet cloak settling over his limbs. It was getting harder to stay awake and Harry knew that it wouldn't be long before he would see his family again. His family...

Harry was looking forward to seeing Sirius and his parents again. Sure he might be abandoning his friends to Voldemort but that only meant that they'd be along to see him soon. He knew he had no chance against Voldemort, it was just impossible for a fifteen year old boy to defeat the most feared dark lord in history and he was only saving himself a long and painful death.

The cold was seeping into his chest now but Harry just could not find the strength to open his eyes. He knew he probably should but it just no longer seemed worth the effort. His lungs froze as the cold seeped all the way through him and then finally reached his heart. He shivered for the first time as the icy tendrils started up his neck and ran through his scalp. Harry just stopped feeling and let himself slide into the darkness that was his at long last.

**NO!** Something inside him fought back and refused to let go of the mortal world. Harry was so tired and tried to just bat whatever it was away but the force absolutely refused to budge. Harry felt his chest burning with fire and pure animalistic rage as something within him fought back against death itself. It was too little too late however and Harry continued to sink towards oblivion. There was just nothing left to save. Still the thing refused to submit and Harry felt as if his head would implode. Whatever was fighting back drew power from Harry's scar and used it to fuel the fires that burned out of control. A bright light shone in the darkness and Harry glimpsed something he never knew existed.

Power, raw magical power and fury was refusing to let Harry sink into death. More power than Harry had ever imagined and far more than he had ever used. His magic refused to let him die and his body was beginning to rebel as well. The vision was both terrifying and intoxicating to Harry. How could any one man be a conduit for such unimaginable power? He could feel his heart begin pounding as if he'd run a marathon, his lungs gasp for breath and everything within him fighting to stay alive.

Harry felt something snap like a rope that was over stretched and suddenly the magic and power within him came pouring out. Like a star exploding into a supernova, the magic blew outwards and burned through his veins purging everything in its path. Warmth returned to his heart, then his lungs, then the rest of his chest. His fingers tingled and his toes twitched as strength returned. Finally the fires trickled through his scalp and his mind lit up as his scar exploded with a flash.

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It was the shrieking that woke him initially but the smell of blood brought his mind into sharp focus. Harry opened his eyes to see his aunt standing at the door to the bathroom screaming her head off in horror. The entire bathtub was filled with warm blood instead of just bloody water.

"Yes?" Harry pretended there was absolutely nothing wrong.

Petunia kept screaming and just raised her hand to point. Finally she had to inhale again and Harry took his opportunity.

Fuck it, Harry decided, he really didn't care anymore, "Oh, this?" He splashed some blood playfully, "The blood of virgins does absolute wonders for the skin. Now do you mind? I'm trying to take a bath."

Petunia paled dramatically and tripped as she tried to back out of the bathroom. She didn't even bother to get up and just scuttled down the hall as fast as she could. Harry got up to close the door and as he did so he noticed that his wrists were completely healed, not even a scar where they'd been slit. Disgustedly he pulled the plug from the drain and watched the tub drain. He wondered idly whether anyone would notice several hundred liters of blood washing through the sewer and what they'd do if they did.

As he was about to step back into the tub and use the shower to rinse off, Vernon bellowed in rage and Harry heard his thunderous footsteps pounding up the stairs. It seemed Petunia had finally gotten her wits together enough to tell his uncle about what she'd seen but he hadn't the wits to be properly scared. Harry reflected that if he heard about a lunatic bathing in human blood, or any type for that matter, that he would do his best to avoid calling attention to himself. Basic survival really...

Nevertheless, there came Vernon screaming about murderous freaks and last straws. As soon as he saw Harry, still quite literally covered in blood, he charged with his hands outstretched to grab his nephew.

Now though Harry had been quite willing to die not so long ago and had only just decided that he really didn't care about what others thought, but he certainly wasn't about to stand for any more of this crap. Without thinking he pulled his leg back and delivered a kick that would make Pelé himself proud right into his uncle's crotch. Harry was surprised to see Vernon actually lifted off the ground by the force of his kick but he could still feel the roar of his magic coursing through his body.

When his uncle fell to the floor in pain, Harry saw the chance for a bit of revenge. He pulled back for another kick and destroyed his uncle's nose, savoring the crunch as it broke under his heel. As a final bit of spite, Harry stole his wallet and headed down the stairs. He didn't even stop to consider the fact that he was still covered in blood, or that he was naked, as he walked right out the door in search of a massive meal and something to drink.

He wasn't even three steps out of the front door when Tonks appeared from under and invisibility cloak. "Great Merlin, Harry! What happened? What was all the screaming about?"

Harry shrugged apathetically, "They annoyed me. See that you don't."

Tonks' hair lost its vibrancy and she looked nauseous as she tried to stumble out a reply. She was utterly helpless as she looked into his green eyes and saw a power lurking there that she could barely comprehend. He said only one word, "**Move,**" but it hit her harder than a killing curse and she found herself stepping aside without even thinking to stop him.

00000

That, Harry decided, was by far the best burger he had ever eaten. The chips were great and the soda as good as ever but damn that pub knew how to make a burger! Unfortunately his meal had been interrupted when the owner had called the police. Again he understood that it was just basic survival strategy to call someone when a naked bloody man walks into your pub and orders a meal. The smart thing to do is give him what he wants as quickly as possible, then ring up the constable to come deal with it. Harry had gone along peacefully when the police sent a car over to investigate and didn't even protest when they gave him a pair of shorts and showed him to the holding cell where he was to wait with a few drunks and a petty thief.

Harry smiled and waved at the thief again just to watch him squirm. He'd heard the Dursleys come in nearly a half hour ago when the police phoned about Vernon's wallet and he had no doubt they were still around somewhere swearing out charges for everything they could think of. He knew that theft and public indecency were going to be tough charges to beat but he wondered what else they could come up with.

A better idea by far Harry decided was to leave before they got around to filing any charges at all. He'd been playing around ever since he'd been stuck in the cell and made a few interesting discoveries. Accidental magic, he knew, happened when a person got particularly emotional, high strung, or were in extreme danger as he'd been earlier. After leveling Vernon and staring an Auror into submission with just a word he guessed that he might be able to use some of that power toward other non obvious ends. He'd practiced by focusing on a particular emotion or goal and experimenting on his fellow prisoners.

"Officer O'Neil, could you come over here for a minute?" Harry called the guard on duty over to the front of the holding cell. He focused on projecting an air of friendliness as the jailer approached. "Look Sean, do you mind if I call you Sean? Great now Sean, me and the boys have been thinking. You see the problem is that they're not really comfortable having a guy like me," Harry gestured at his bloody chest, "sharing a cell with a bunch of fine upstanding citizens like themselves."

"I'm sorry, but well," Sean waved his hand helplessly, "it's the only one we've got so..."

Harry smiled broadly and did his best to put an arm around the officer's shoulders and leaned in to whisper, his voice taking on a calm, almost hypnotic, tone. "I know, and we appreciate everything you do for us here. My real trouble Sean is that there are rather a lot of people who want to harm me."

"Oh don't you worry about that Mr. Potter," the jailer promised, "this cell is very secure. You'll be safe here."

"I have complete faith in you Officer O'Neil, I'd just get worried if you weren't around," Harry focused on generating a sense of trust and innocence. "I'd feel a lot better if you were here in the cell with us though. And I'm sure the boys feel the same since you'll be protecting them from me as well."

"That does make some sense," Sean agreed.

"Great," Harry gushed enthusiastically and tried to force even more magic into his words this time, "Now you just open the door... That's it, come on in. Now since they don't want to share a cell with me, I'll go out here... And we're all set!" Harry pulled the door closed from outside the cell and sat down leaning against the bars. "Now the boys are happy, I'm happy, and you're guarding all of us. Uh-oh, come here Sean, I just thought of something," Harry gestured for the officer to lean over. Focusing again on trust and friendliness Harry whispered in the officer's ear, "Sean, I don't think it's a good idea to have the keys in the cell with you. That guy over there was arrested for pick pocketing and we wouldn't want to give him any ideas..."

As soon as the jailer passed his keys through the bars Harry walked towards the exit, his goals accomplished. He dropped the keys in a waste paper bin on his way past and strolled out of the police station as if everything were right in the world. Vernon's spare key was in the magnetic box behind the bumper as always and Harry decided a short trip with air conditioning was far preferable to walking all the way home from Greater Whinging. After all, how hard could driving an auto really be compared to a broom?

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Harry ducked between the houses and quickly pulled himself over the fence. He could still hear the sirens from the police cars behind him and he really did not want to be found again. He'd stashed his broom and trunk under his invisibility cloak in a nearby park so they wouldn't slow him down but he never expected the police to be looking for him so quickly and he'd been spotted before he even thought to hide.

After crashing Vernon's BMW into a lamp post near Privet Drive, Harry had walked the rest of the way home, gathered his things and flown his broom towards Exeter. He knew Hermione lived somewhere in the city but he'd never been to Exeter before and now he had to dodge the police as well. His plan hadn't originally been to visit Hermione but once he remembered that he had very few ideas where Godric's Hollow actually was, he decided to visit the one person he was sure would have an atlas or map.

He continued scurrying about and cutting through people's back gardens until the siren was far behind him. Through some strange kind of luck Harry soon found himself recognizing the street name and counting the house numbers. In no time at all he was looking at a nice half timbered house up on Stepcote Hill that matched the address Hermione always put on her letters.

Hermione's father came to the door promptly, but Harry could hear the sirens again and he knew he didn't have much time, "Hey Mr. Granger, I hope you remember me, my name is Harry Potter."

"Oh yes, Hermione's told us quite a bit about you," he began. "So what brings you out tonight?"

"I was just hoping to speak with Hermione for a few minutes," Harry glanced nervously down the block and saw the glow of headlights approaching the end of the street.

He could see that Hermione's father was about to reply in the negative but was saved by Hermione's panicked voice from inside, "Oh my God! Daddy come see this, it's Harry!"

Taking advantage of the situation Harry pushed past Mr. Granger and got inside just before the police car rolled around the corner. Hurrying towards his friend's voice, Harry arrived in a tastefully decorated living room to find Hermione and her mother staring at the telly in shock as his mug shot from earlier in the day was displayed as well as a list of charges.

"They definitely didn't get my good side," Hermione's head whipped around as soon as Harry started speaking.

"Harry!" Hermione didn't even slow down as she vaulted over the back of the sofa and wrapped her friend in a hug.

"Just what is going on here?" Mr. Granger near bellowed. "First he shows up unannounced, then there's a wanted poster, and now police patrolling down my street? Who are you and what's going on?"

"**Calm yourself,**" Harry commanded. "**You never saw me. I was never here. You went to bed early because there was nothing interesting on television.**"

Hermione's mother looked dazed for a moment and shook her head as if to clear the mental cobwebs, "What are you..."

"**I was never here. You went to bed early.**" Harry repeated in his persuasive voice. Both adults nodded slowly and moved for the stairs in a daze. Hermione shivered as they left the room but didn't say anything until they were well gone.

"I've never heard anything like that," Hermione said without letting go of him. "What did you do to them?"

"Nothing, I just gave them a little suggestion. They'll be fine in the morning," Harry promised.

"But it was like you were so powerful. Even though I wasn't the one it was directed at, I still wanted to obey..."

"I am powerful, I just never realized exactly how powerful until today. And don't worry about the telly," Harry assured her. "I'm sure that a letter to Dumbledore will see this all cleaned up in no time. He's probably already out there obliviating most of the Surrey police department. After all it's not as if I've actually done anything wrong."

"Not done anything wrong? They say you killed somebody! You were still covered in their blood when they took your picture!"

"Who is it that I've supposedly killed? Unless there's a body somewhere that I've forgotten about I've never successfully killed anyone in my life."

"What do you mean, successfully killed?"

"Voldemort didn't exactly stay dead so I don't think he counts," Harry frowned as he remembered something. "Quirrel might count though. I'm not sure if it was me or the Dark Lord that actually finished him off. Still, I haven't killed anyone recently so that part is completely false."

"What about the robbery, assault, and grand theft auto?" She asked disapprovingly.

"If it wasn't a crime when the Dursleys did it to me, I don't think it was a crime that I finally returned the favor. As for the prison break, if there was a video camera in the cell it will show that the guards let me go. I figure Sirius would be so proud right now," Harry shook his head, "Look that's really not important. Like I said that's all going to go away in a few days, a week tops. I came here to ask you a quick favor."

"Of course you can stay here until this is resolved. My parent's might need some convincing but I'm sure they'll help you," Hermione promised.

"That's nice to hear but I don't need it. I was just hoping you had an atlas or a really good map," he explained. "I've got a place to stay but I have no clue where I'm going."

"Of course," Hermione moved to one of the book cases along the side of the room and pulled down a thick book. "Here's an atlas and I'll just run up to my parent's office and grab our road maps."

Harry accepted the heavy book and opened it to the very back. Taking a guess based on the name Godric's Hollow, he noticed a few places in Britain that might hide the little hamlet. North Yorkshire, Herefordshire, the Desert of Wales, the Scottish Highlands, and Devon all contained moors which, if the Sorting Hat could be trusted, were Godric's homeland. Taking the maps Hermione was handing him, he spread them out across the floor and started looking.

Since a hollow was a valley or depressed bit of earth, Harry started in western Wales looking for any combination of valleys and moors. A few minutes later he breathed a sigh of relief. At least he wasn't Welsh. Yorkshire and Herefordshire were likewise vacant of any recognizable names. Harry decided to skip the Highlands for the moment and looked to Devon, might as well eliminate the easy bits first since there were so many mountains and valleys in Scotland.

There! Smack in the middle of Dartmoor, just south of Two Bridges, lay a group of tors and in the middle a tiny dot labeled Godric's Hollow. He pulled the map of Scotland over anyway for a bit of misdirection just in case Hermione was being her usual studious self. After a moment he faked an epiphany and tapped a spot of the map a few times near Loch Lomond.

"Found it," He announced. "Would you mind if I borrowed this? I'll have Hedwig bring it back as soon as I get there."

"Sure," Hermione hugged him again and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Stay safe Harry."

Harry had a better idea and returned the kiss in the form of a full on snog. Looking at his now speechless friend Harry smiled cockily, "When do I ever play it safe?"

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Godric's Hollow it turned out was little more than a few farmhouses at the end of a dirt road. As he flew along the road Harry felt the slight tingle of magic down towards the very end. When he flew lower to investigate, a modest two story home appeared where before the road simply stopped without explanation. A large hole had been blown through the roof on the backside and the what was left of the door was still sitting on the front lawn. If Harry had harbored any doubts that he was in the right place, this disproved them without question. This was definitely the house where Voldemort had attacked his family.

Landing through the hole in the nursery, Harry found himself very angry at most of the adults who claimed to be looking out for him. Nobody had attempted to salvage a thing from the house, plush toys long since destroyed by mold and rot literally fell into dust as he touched them. The floor was rotting and he could see down into the kitchen in some places. Other rooms as he found them were not a whole lot better. The moisture had allowed mold and mildew to claim what used to be expensive wallpaper and rugs. The whole place smelled of decay but from the general state of things Harry could tell that no one had stepped foot in the house for years, if ever. Ironically it was this fact that convinced Harry it was safe and almost surely unknown. He'd have to find somewhere else to stay eventually but it would do for a few days.

Harry broke a chair from the kitchen down and threw the wood into the hearth. As soon as he did, the wood burst into flames when the hearth's enchantments were triggered. Harry broke a few more chairs and set them next to the fireplace so he'd have fuel to get him through the night and then began brushing a place clear for him to lie down on the floor. He nearly jumped out of his skin when some dust hit the fire and the flames turned green.

Realizing this meant the floo was still hooked up, Harry called the only place he knew would still be open, the Leaky Cauldron. For a few sickles Harry bought a warm meal of take out and a cold butter beer. Seizing the chance to query someone who had no reason to be suspicious when he asked questions, Harry got the names and floo addresses of two businesses which made Wizarding tents and the gist of what one would cost him. Maybe he wouldn't have to move again after all, he'd sort that all out in the morning.


	2. Chapter 2

"I need a tent," Harry announced as he walked through the door.

"Harry Potter!" The salesman gasped, "It's an honor, I'm sure we've got just the tent you need around here somewhere. We just got some in last week that would be perfect for the discerning traveler like yourself. Six bedrooms spread across two stories, you'll have all the amenities of home wherever you find yourself going."

Harry held up his hand to stop the man. "No thank you. I just need one bedroom, a kitchen and a loo."

"You want a walkup?" The salesman was aghast. "But the art of making Wizarding tents has advanced so much since those days. We can build almost anything you want."

"What I want is a tent containing a small flat with no bells and very few whistles. Just show me the simplest one you have in stock. But I'll tell you what, answer a few questions for me and I'll make up the difference in your commission. Sound fair?" Harry jiggled his money bag meaningfully. "Since the space inside isn't fully in this dimension can anyone outside tell what's going on inside?"

Light dawned in the salesman's eyes and he cracked a boyish smile, "Ah... Setting up a bit of a hideaway are we? I remember being that age. All of our tents come with built in silencing charms so no matter what kind of noises you or your guests end up making you won't have to worry about speculative looks from the neighbors so long as you're discreet. Just remember to cast your protection spells first or your love nest may get a little crowded, know what I mean?"

"Your tents block underage magic detection? Seems to me that sort of thing ought to cost extra."

The salesman shrugged, "Don't rightly know, I've never heard of anyone testing that specifically. I do know however that magic is tracked by where it was cast not by the individual wand. Just make sure your illicit rendezvous happen a good distance from your home and there'll be nothing to worry about."

"Nice to know, now how about we look at a few tents and I'll chime in with questions as they come to me?"

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Hermione was sitting on his trunk when Harry arrived back in Godric's Hollow. The bright witch helped him up as he fell flat on his face from the floo and the two locked eyes.

"You're in my house," Harry challenged.

"And you're not in Scotland," Hermione pointed out.

"Yes but you don't need permission to not be somewhere. So who else knows you're here?"

"I told my mother I wanted to go hiking today so I could look for potions ingredients and she dropped me off in Princetown," she promised. "So no one I guess."

Harry shrugged, "Welcome to my home then. It suits me in a weird way."

"It's a dump!" Hermione protested.

"And so am I, we've both been neglected, forgotten, abused and now we're both falling apart at the seams." Harry gave a wry chuckle, "As I said, it suits me. So what brings the brightest witch of her age into the hovel of a lowly potter?"

"That's not what I meant and you know it!" Hermione fumed, then stopped. "You're baiting me. You want me to be angry, you want me to fight. Why?"

"Later," Harry brushed it away. "First you can tell me why you tracked me down and we'll settle all the whys and what not later."

"First, I came because I am your friend and you clearly need someone to help you. Second I came because I wanted to know what was going on," now Hermione blushed a bit, "And third you can't just kiss a girl like that and just walk away!"

Harry smiled like the cat that caught the canary. "Apparently I can, whether or not I should is an entirely different question. As for my needing help and what is going on, that's the answer to why I've been baiting you."

Harry stood up and gestured around the room with a manic glint in his eye, "What I'm doing is hitting bottom, testing just how far I can really go. I learned something recently. I had a vision of just what I'm made of but it was gone in an instant. Now I am going to systematically destroy myself until it truly cannot get any worse. When I find that place... I'll know who I am, what I'm capable of, and exactly where my limits are. I'll finally show the world who Harry Potter really is."

"And the kiss?" Hermione asked meekly, only half sure she really wanted to know.

"The first step to hitting bottom is to forget the rules. I do what I want because that's what I want to do. Rules be damned, if I'm going to learn anything about myself I cannot care when other people's feelings get hurt." Harry was stalking the room now, slowly circling his friend as he passionately ranted. "I kissed you because I felt like it. Nothing more or less. It was fairly satisfying and I might try something like that again some day but for now I've got to focus on now. Hells Bells, 'now' is what this whole thing is about! In the end Voldemort will keep trying to kill me until one of us is dead permanently, if it's me that does the dying I sure as hell don't want to die never having lived!"

"What do you mean, learning about yourself?" She asked him. "If you don't know yourself, who does?"

"Why do you ask? Why do you want to know?" Harry challenged. "Do you want to learn because it's part of who you really are, or because your parents expected you to? You place so much faith in other people, especially those in positions of authority. Why? Do you trust them because you respect them, or because of the position they hold? You blindly follow the rules, but who made the rules? Who decides what's right for you? Are you going to let others tell you how to live your life, or will you wake up and start making decisions for yourself?"

Hermione looked at her friend with new eyes. All that power, the passion, the uncontrolled and defiant spirit... He was both incredibly scary and incredibly attractive. It was like staring at a button that would destroy the world. She knew that one wrong step could destroy everything, but at the same time she was drawn to act. As soon as he passed by again Hermione grabbed him by the front of his robes and kissed him. It started as just a simple peck on the lips but as Harry kissed her back she got bolder and nearly shoved her tongue down his throat. As they broke apart she gave a little gasp and stared into his intense green eyes, "Fuck the rules, I liked it too."

00000

After days spent patching the roof and door with repaired or transfigured materials, Harry started to spend his time in the basement trying to remember every Potions class he had attended with Neville Longbottom. Bubbling away in a cauldron he had enlarged for the experiment was one of Neville's more disastrous failures. Madam Pomphrey had needed to treat almost the entire class after the potion exploded showering some with shards of cauldron and leaving the rest breathing poisonous vapors. At first Harry had been a bit hesitant about this particular plan but he held fast to his decision to do what he pleased and he knew deep in his heart that nothing in the world could please him more than destroying Number Four once and for all. If the Dursleys died too, heh bonus points...

As soon as the potion began to boil furiously out of control, Harry cast a stasis charm to hold it exactly as it was. When he released it, or when it expired on it's own, the chain reaction would continue as it had begun and in no time at all the cauldron would explode in a frenetic orgy of kinetic doom. The wards around Number Four were almost singing with welcome as Harry snuck back in under cover of darkness. He could almost believe that they were alive and sharing his anticipation. Harry placed the enlarged cauldron into the cupboard under the stairs just as the featherweight charm he had cast expired. Taking this as his cue, Harry nearly ran out of the back door and jumped on his broom.

He was not even a mile away when he heard he muffled thump and watched the sky light up with an orange flash that indicated his childhood prison was no more. He didn't even bother checking for survivors, he no longer cared.

He was sickened by how little the idea of killing the Dursley family bothered him. Shouldn't he have some sort of inborn desire not to hurt people? Eventually he gave up trying to feel bad. Some people just needed to die. Killing Voldemort would be more troublesome for him than the Dursleys, another epiphany that disturbed him at first. Voldemort had killed his parents and tried to kill him, but the Dursleys were just walking scum. They seemed to have seniority on his "better dead" list for some reason.

00000

Unfortunately for her parents, Hermione had chosen to disappear with Harry. She'd returned the first day but eventually her curiosity won out. She just reappeared one day with a sleeping bag and Harry made no mention of it. He spotted her picture on several posters when he went into town for food but didn't mention it to her. She was still too attached to the idea that self discovery was something she could just pick up or put down on a whim. Had she known she might have tried to contact her parents and reassure them, something that would surely end her quest.

Now that the roof was patched, the house began to dry out bit by bit. Hermione of course tried to save the family library and spell books but most of them were just too far gone. The house became littered with parchment and paper as she would find a page here and there that were still half legible. Those she separated from the rest to dry flat so as to preserve what little was left.

Slowly she became obsessed with the little snippets she could decipher. The Potters had not been lax once they left school and she found a variety of half completed drawings and theories about what Voldemort had done to himself. As she read some of them, they clicked in her mind and she got a few ideas about where Harry could start if he wanted to match the Dark Lord in power.

She shrieked in surprise and fear when she found him kneeling in front of the fireplace, a look of desperate pain on his face as a red hot poker was pressed into his chest. "Oh my God, Harry what are you doing?"

For a moment Harry didn't respond except to hiss as he pressed the heated metal harder. Then he gave a howl of rage and frustration as he hurled the poker across the room hard enough to make it stick into the opposite wall.

"I will control it!" He protested to no one, "I have the power, so why can't I use it? Sure, I'm stronger than I used to be but this is nothing compared to what I can be. I will possess it, I will conquer it, I will be that power!"

"Harry, what's going on?"

"I know that I am much more powerful than the magic I can access right now. When I kicked my fat uncle, he was actually lifted off the ground and I barely felt the effort. Now I stub my toe on a pebble and it hurts. I've got to find a way to unleash that power permanently."

She held up the papers she had been salvaging, "I think I might have a way. Voldemort completed several rituals to make himself more powerful and your parent's were doing research to figure out what they were. If we can recover enough of their notes, we might be able to do the same to you..."

"No," Harry said with a tone of finality. "The Dark Arts are for weaklings and pissants who want to rush their way to the top."

"Are you saying Voldemort was a weakling?" Hermione asked in a shock.

"No, he was just lazy," Harry told her.

"How can you say that? He's the second most powerful wizard in the world after Dumbledore."

"Crucio," Harry cursed Hermione and held her under the unforgivable for a few seconds before letting her go. "So simple, it only takes three syllables and a flick to put someone completely at your mercy. I didn't have to do anything other than want you to hurt and you did. Any idiot with a wand can cast the unforgivable curses and rituals are nothing but a checklist and a recipe. The power of the Dark Arts is little more than a crutch, any competent wizard can do so much more with less. If I wanted you to feel pain, I could take our very first transfiguration lesson and turn all these splinters into needles. A levitation spell would see the air so thick with metal slivers you couldn't move without impaling yourself. If I wanted you to burn I might heat the needles first. Or freeze them. Or maybe electrify them. A powerful wizard can torture someone any number of ways, he does not need a crutch used by amateurs and incompetents. A killing curse will strike a person dead in an instant but using a tickling charm to kill takes power and creativity. The Dark Arts cannot show you what you are really made of, they can only give you shortcuts and crutches."

"Why?" Hermione gasped from the floor. "I thought I was your friend."

"Because some knowledge can only be properly learned when you experience it first hand," Harry put his wand away and walked out of the room. "I will become all that I can be, but when I kill Voldemort it will be because I am better than him, not because I performed more rituals or got him with one lucky shot."

00000

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Hermione pestered Harry.

"Of course it is, before I can play my strengths I have to know what they are," He promised, "now shut up. I'm trying to be sneaky here."

"But Harry, you're talking about arson."

"Yes, I'm talking about arson," He fixed her with a powerful stare. "They've slandered me, belittled me, made me a monster and hailed me as a king. Not to mention the millions of galleons they've made by selling my name. I haven't seen a knut and I don't particularly feel like letting it continue. Besides all of their offenses against me, the Daily Prophet is the single worst offender when it comes to telling others what to think or do."

"But I thought this quest thing was all about you!" She complained. "Why do you have to destroy the Prophet?"

"It is about me and I've discovered three things this week. Firstly I really don't like the Prophet. I had to read several of them to try to form an unbiased opinion but I discovered that it truly is absolute rubbish. Secondly I discovered that while I'm normally pretty nice, I like revenge as much as the next person. Call it a guilty pleasure if you must. And finally I discovered that I quite like helping others," Harry smiled viciously. "And this is one of those times I can take care of all three at once. This is for their own good. Just like when I tortured you, it will be unpleasant at first and people will scream, but in the end they will be better off."

Heading off anymore argument, Harry jammed his crowbar under the latch on the window and heaved. The wood split with a crack, but it was no louder than someone apparating and he hoped that no one would pay attention to it. Sliding the window open, he slipped inside and motioned for Hermione to toss him his bag. Now that he was inside he could hear the steady clacking and shuffling of the old presses cranking out copies of the morning news. He pulled out his first jerry can of petrol from the magically expanded bag and started splashing it into offices as he made his way down the corridor towards the printing room. The fumes were fairly thick when Harry kicked open the last door only to find he was not alone in the building. One of the Patil twins, Padma from her name plate, was staring out the window (probably working on an astronomy assignment he decided) and only occasionally glancing towards the machines to make sure nothing had gone wrong. Harry was still trying to decide what to do with her when she noticed him.

"Harry Potter? What are you doing here?" She asked as she came around from behind her desk.

"That depends really, if I gave you a kiss and asked you nicely would you leave the building quickly and never look back?"

"Huh? I can't just leave," she protested, "my future is riding on this internship. It doesn't matter how horrid the job really is, I can't just walk away."

"Plan B then," Harry told her without missing a beat. He locked his eyes on hers and concentrated, "**Sleep**."

She gave a yawn but was otherwise unaffected, "Harry, what are you..."

"**SLEEP**," He repeated more forcefully. When she still refused to bend to his will, though she was clearly starting to become disoriented, he frowned. "Alright, Plan C."

He grabbed a paperweight off of her desk and thwacked her upside the head causing her to fall unconscious at his feet, "Sorry Padma but I can't leave any magical traces for the Aurors."

Harry finished pouring petrol over the stacks of newspapers and equipment in the room before coming back to his fallen classmate. With a grunt he heaved her over his shoulders as best he could and decided that in the future he would try to get people out of the way first before knocking them out. Rather than going back through the window, Harry and his cargo left through the back door where Hermione had been keeping watch.

"Change of plans," He told her when she looked at him questioningly. "I've decided to try my hand at kidnapping as well, sort of a two for one deal tonight. Set off that rocket and let's get out of here."


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer; I don't own Harry Potter or his friends.

* * *

"Now what should I do with you?" Harry asked Padma when she finally woke up. She was tied to a chair so that she couldn't get away. "I don't really feel like going to prison, and I'm not sure you can keep your mouth shut."

"Please, just let me go," the young Ravenclaw begged, "I promise I won't tell anyone you were there. I must have fallen asleep, or wandered off. I wasn't even there last night. Please..."

"I don't think that will work," Harry picked up a knife and started circling her. "You see the problem is that the Prophet building no longer exists. I burned it to the ground, but no one knows I was there other than you. They do however know that you were there. Since I doubt you are willing to take the fall for me, I don't know what to do with you."

"Please don't hurt me," tears began leaking down Padma's cheeks. "I'm not going to tell anyone..."

"I can't just let you go, and if I keep you here you'll just run off and tell everyone the moment my back is turned."

Tears were pouring from her eyes when she spoke again, "You aren't going to kill me are you? No, you wouldn't kill anyone. Please, I'll do anything you want just don't kill me."

Harry laughed harshly, "I wouldn't kill anyone? The only reason you even know my name is because I killed someone. I killed Voldemort, Professor Quirrel, Tom Riddle and his basilisk, and some people believe I killed Diggory... Heck, I'm pretty sure I even killed the last of my family just this past week. Do you really believe I wouldn't kill you if I had to?"

"No," Padma started sobbing incoherently and trying to plead with him, "no... anything... no, no, no... anything..."

"Shh... Quiet now," Harry stroked Padma's hair and whispered soothing nothings in her ear. "Tears won't solve anything so you need to calm down. If you died right now, if I slit your throat with this knife and watched you bleed to death, what would you regret most?"

"I don't know!"

"So you're ready to die?" He asked, "There was nothing you were hoping to do but never got the chance? You don't have any secrets that you need to confess before you go? Well then I guess I shouldn't feel bad about this..."

"No!" She screamed, "Wait a minute, I'm not ready to die."

"Why not?"

"I haven't even lived. I wanted to write a book, I wanted to see the world, I wanted people to know my name instead of just being Pavarti's twin... I don't want to die a virgin!"

Harry stalked around to stand in front of his captive, "Then here's what we're going to do. I've decided not to kill you..."

Padma started crying again, "Thank you, oh great Merlin, thank you!"

"Shush, I'm not going to kill you today. We're going to go to the bank and I'm going to give you a lot of money. Then you are going to buy a portkey and go as far as you can. You're going to see as much of the world as you can in the next two months and you're going to start writing. I don't care what it's about so long as you're writing, and when we see each other again on the train you better be able to tell me that you've started living," Harry reached out and cut her ropes with the knife. "But I'll warn you, if you ever, and I do mean ever tell anyone about where I was last night..."

"No, I swear I won't say anything," as soon as her arms were free Padma clung to Harry like a drowning woman to a raft. "Thank you Harry, thank you."

"I'm giving you a gift," Harry told her seriously, "I'm giving you back your life, now make sure it isn't worthless."

00000

"Where's Padma?" Hermione asked him as soon as he came out of the floo.

"She's no longer our problem," Harry told her. "Now when were you planning to force your magic to wake up?"

"This isn't about me, what do you mean she's no longer our problem? What did you do to her?"

"I got rid of her of course. I couldn't just let her go after she'd seen too much and if I tried to keep her here she would just run away at the first opportunity," Harry explained calmly. "So I asked her if she had any last regrets and then I got rid of her, simple really."

"What?" Hermione looked at him dumbly and then she managed to process what he told her. She didn't even look behind her as she just collapsed into a chair and stared at him hatefully. "Got rid of her?" She shrieked. "She was our friend Harry. She was a human being, you can't just 'get rid of' people when they get in your way. Merlin, the police were right, you really are just a dangerous criminal now. What happened to my friend who would never hurt a fly?"

"He died alone and unloved in a bath three weeks ago," He told her coldly. "He died because no one listened when he cried for help. Strange, he had so many friends, why did they ignore him?"

"Ignored you? You were only there for three days before you just show up on my doorstep and on the run. You never asked me for help, damn you!" Hermione was livid and Harry was pleased to see a window behind her shatter outward. There was a spark of something in her eyes, something hard and unquenchable. "You were my best friend, my first friend. If you had asked me for anything at all it would have been yours. When I thought you needed my help I came here. I've lived in this pile of filth for two weeks because I loved you, and now I find out I don't even know you."

"And you never did," Harry told her, smiling with a twisted sort of satisfaction as more things began to rattle and break. "Year after year I told you what the Dursleys were like. Didn't it seem odd that I wanted to live with someone everyone thought was a mass murderer as soon as he asked me? No, you never knew me. You were blind and ignorant to what was right under your nose."

Suddenly all of the glass in the house exploded as Hermione pulled herself into a towering rage. "**I. AM. NOT. IGNORANT!**" She screamed and bodily threw herself at her former friend.

In an instant Harry had more on his hands than he could deal with. He threw himself out of the way at the last moment using every bit of dodging instinct the Dursleys had managed to beat into him only to watch as Hermione slammed into the wall and broke through into the kitchen. She came up screaming however and didn't miss with her second charge. She took him to the floor and began battering him with her fists and elbows. Every punch felt like a sledgehammer and Harry struggled to catch his breath. Seeing the next fist coming for his face Harry watched in awe as Hermione's hand went right through the floor boards when he jerked to the side.

The fight was mostly one sided for awhile as Harry's half mad cackling with glee only served to make Hermione stronger. Harry was definitely on the losing side not being able to match her magic and rage fueled strength but he was still level headed and smart. Dudley and his friends had loved to beat on him when he was younger and he'd learned more than a few ways to break out of a hold. He was using every one of them just trying to stay intact. Finally he saw his chance and slid around to her back, locking her arms with his.

"It feels good doesn't it? Do you like the way your magic makes you powerful, makes you strong?" He half whispered in her ear.

"I'll feel better when you're dead! You betrayed me. You betrayed us!" She slammed backwards against the floor, managing to stun him. Taking advantage of his moment of weakness she grabbed him by the throat and lifted him off the floor with only one hand. "You can't just go around killing people. I'll stop you, if it's the last thing I do. If it's the only thing I can do for our friendship, I'll stop you..."

The light began to fade and the world grew dim for Harry as Hermione's impossibly strong grip got even tighter. He was getting worried that his mouth had written a check his body couldn't cash when he felt the tingle deep within him of his magic finally starting to respond. Right away he felt the burn in his muscles and the tide turned. He kicked out at the side of her knees and brought them both back to the floor and equal footing.

The wrestling match continued for a while with neither side the clear victor. Somebody had obviously taught Hermione how to fight dirty because she was not about to give an inch even to a stronger opponent. Harry was focused on survival and subduing Hermione but she was out to cripple or kill him making the contest a more even struggle. The blind rage lessening a little bit, Hermione realized she would not win a physical fight and retreated towards her wand with a couple more kicks and knees thrown towards soft tissue. Harry scrambled to draw his own and the two friends spent a tense moment looking at the glowing end of each other's wand, too close to dodge or block.

"She's alive," Harry wheezed around the pain in his ribs and groin.

She dropped her wand as if it was on fire, "What do you mean she's alive?"

"Padma is alive," Harry restated as he rubbed his throat. "I just sent her on a long holiday until the start of term. She's in Peru by now."

Hermione seemed to deflate and crumble within herself, "Then why? Why tell me you got rid of her? Why imply she was dead? Why provoke me into almost killing you? Oh my God... I tried to kill you!"

"Didn't it feel good? Didn't you feel wonderful when your magic took over? Don't you want to feel like that all the time?" He flicked his wand and summoned a few potions to deal with their bruises.

She took hers and was silent for a while. Finally she spoke again with a touch of awe in her voice, "I don't know what happened, it was like I was invincible and I could do anything. It's still running through me, like some adrenaline rush that hasn't faded yet. It's incredible, the power, the freedom, the strength, the absolute certainty that I was right..."

"I know the feeling," Harry smiled. "So are we done trying to kill each other?"

She looked at him and licked her lips, "Damn all this fighting is making my heart pound. It's making me kind of horny."

"I've got a tent in the master bedroom, decent flat with a good bed," Harry suggested.

"You've had a nice little flat set up while I've been sleeping on the floor?" Hermione's eyes glinted again. "I'm not done with you yet Potter, one way or another I'm going to make you scream..."

00000

"Harry?" Hermione asked quietly late that evening.

"Yeah?"

"Are we like, you know?" She trailed off before trying a different approach. "Does this change **us**?"

"It doesn't have to," He told her. "We are still the same people we always were. It's like when we kissed, good or bad it didn't change the fact that we were friends."

"But what if it was a mistake?"

"Then we just have to keep moving. Life isn't about the past, it's about the present," Harry pulled her closer. "Besides do you think it was a mistake?"

"No," she said with conviction. "I just worry. Everyone says this is supposed to be a major thing."

"And our friendship was trivial? Hell's fire woman you've faced certain death at my side and never backed down. You've stared down murderers and even tried to put me down when you thought I'd become the same," Harry gave her another squeeze. "I hardly think that's anything minor. Just stop listening to what everyone else says for once and decide these things for yourself."

"Sorry about that by the way."

"Don't worry about it, I provoked you intentionally. It's good that you'll let me know when I go too far though," he told her. "I'm changing a lot. I know I'm doing a lot of things that are really pushing it, but if I ever lose touch with reality completely, I want to know there is someone who won't be afraid to do whatever it takes to stop me."

00000

"We just need to think logically about this," Hermione said as she paced the floor. "Why is it that we can only access our magic directly when we are in danger or angry? You've managed to put some of it into your voice and you've certainly developed a sort of presence but why isn't your magic always available?"

"Because I don't really need it?" Harry suggested. "When I first came back to life I needed it to survive for a while. Once everything settled down there was no clear outlet to focus on."

"But why can you still use your voice to persuade people and why can I feel it whenever you enter a room?" Hermione asked him. "How is that essential?"

Harry thought it over, "No clue, I think it might have something to do with just being aware of the potential."

"No, it's more than that. I couldn't feel you when you first came to my house," She frowned a bit. "I could feel your power when you forced my parents away but that was more like feeling a near miss from a curse than this radiant aura you have now. Now it's like standing close to a blazing fire whenever you enter a room. It becomes impossible to ignore you."

"Good to know that I'm noticed," He said sarcastically, "I'm not talking about just waking up and thinking "wow, I'm a powerful guy" and suddenly being a super wizard. I mean that I am more aware of what that power can do because I finally found true freedom. Losing all hope was freedom, it is only when you've lost everything that you're free to do anything."

"You keep saying that but I still don't know what it means," Hermione complained.

"Look, the next time you see Draco Malfoy ask him if he would like to kill Ron. More than likely he'll agree readily, so why isn't Ron dead? Why hasn't he had an accident and fallen off the astonomy tower, or down some stairs, or onto one of the swords from the suits of armor in the halls?" Harry quizzed her. "The reason Ron can rest easy at night is that Malfoy has too much to lose. Now me, I tried to kill myself. I've already given up on everything and left it all behind, which means I've got nothing to lose. If I were to murder Malfoy in the middle of the Great Hall at dinner time, the worst they could do to me would be to kill me," Harry laughed, "Surprise! That's only giving me something I wanted anyway. If I've got an idea for a really wild business or trip to start after Hogwarts, there's no reason not to do it anymore. If I fail miserably and find myself penniless, not a problem since I'm already living in a shitty house and eating bad food."

"Ah," Hermione's eyes showed she was catching on. "I think I'm getting it now."

"Once I know exactly how bad things can get, I just settle in and get comfortable. Then no matter what happens it can only be an improvement." Harry shrugged helplessly. "Somehow that realization is helping me magically, I know my limits. The harder I push myself, the more I discover that I never knew how strong I was all along. When you know you've got magic to burn, a little bit used to warn others is hardly a blip on the radar."


	4. Chapter 4

Kings Cross was always crowded on the first of September but this year there were a few extra bodies crowding the back to school rush. Constables and Inspectors from Scotland Yard were outside the station and placed along the walk between Platforms Nine and Ten scanning the crowds for the face of a missing girl. Inside Platform Nine and Three Quarters, Order Members and Aurors were also on the look out for several wayward students. As it happened, Harry and Hermione stepped out of a taxi right in front of one of the Inspectors but a wordless glare from Hermione froze him in his tracks. She assumed he was about to confront Harry and was having none of that. Like Harry's magic voice, she'd learned to freeze people in their tracks with just a look, the fire in her eyes warning them not to tempt fate.

The crowds parted before the two teens like butter before a hot knife. No one jostled them, nor did anyone even look directly at them or pass within five feet. They both had a presence that simply demanded respect and recognition, causing people to hurry out of their way. Near the entrance to the Wizarding platform, Hermione spotted her parents and gave them a cheerful wave before passing through the enchanted arch. Her parents nearly cried in relief but the constables and inspectors were near tears for other reasons entirely. Everyone of them had seen the pair but none could get near enough to stop them for questioning and now they were beyond reach.

Once through the barrier, the waiting Order members had their chance. Between Harry's persuasive voice and Hermione's very real death glare they all decided it was best to let Dumbledore question them about their whereabouts and activities. Though several of the members like Moody were able to brush off the compulsion elements the pair were throwing off with no trouble, they wisely decided it was best not to force the issue with anyone who could generate them so easily.

There were only fifteen minutes left before the train was scheduled to leave by the time Harry shook off the last of the overly inquisitive adults who all wanted to trap him for his own good. As he and Hermione were boarding the train, a bell rang to indicate an incoming portkey and Harry saw Padma Patil land in the designated square. Noticing the Aurors trying to discretely surround her Harry gave his trunk to Hermione and moved to assist.

"Something the matter Gentlemen?" Harry asked the Aurors as he grabbed Padma's trunk.

"Nothing to worry about Mister Potter," one of the Aurors, Dawlish if Harry remembered correctly, assured him, "We just need to ask Miss Patil a few questions about the act of arson that occurred at the Daily Prophet while she was an intern there."

"You'd be wasting your time," Harry promised. "I can personally assure you that she wasn't even there that night. She and I were together at the time. **I suggest you look elsewhere.**"

"And just what were the two of you doing?" Dawlish pressed, "Can anyone reliable vouch for your whereabouts?"

Padma came up from behind and stroked Harry's chest seductively. With a rich throaty voice she addressed the Aurors, "Let me see, what could two hormonal teenagers possibly be doing all alone in the middle of the night?"

With a cocky grin Harry added his own response, "If you ask her I'm sure Hermione Granger could tell you everything you want to know about that day. It's not often she gets so riled up so I'm sure she remembers it quite clearly."

The Aurors faces showed either amusement or scandalous shock when Harry easily swung the heavy trunk up onto his shoulder. Extending his other hand to Padma, Harry gave the assembled Aurors a nod, "If there are no more questions we'll be headed off now. Busy term ahead of us and all that, we mustn't miss the train."

Once they had joined Hermione in a compartment Padma thanked Harry, "I appreciate you getting rid of the Aurors for me. It might have been tricky otherwise."

"No trouble, just protecting my investment after all," Harry waved her off. "So long as no one suspects me, I'll make sure no one bothers you either. My fame and reputation do have some perks. Now for the hard question, are you living or just surviving?"

"Living well," she answered with conviction. "I've been writing a book detailing the history of sex magic around the world. You'll never believe how much research I've been doing. There was a lot more to the subject than I thought."

"That's an... odd choice," Hermione remarked.

"Once I was free to explore what I wanted instead of what my family or friends expected of me I followed Harry's instructions and tried to make sure I wouldn't die with any regrets," Padma shrugged. "Somewhere along the way I just sort of decided it was an interesting field and something I wanted to study more in depth. In South America practitioners can stay youthful until the day they die, which helped spawn the myth of the fountain of youth. Buddhist sex magics focus on necromancy and the soul, while Hindu magics have powerful divinatory uses. Almost every culture has different ideas about sex and consequently different magics."

"Well you'll definitely move out of Pavarti's shadow," Harry commented. "According to locker room gossip she may have enthusiasm but she lacks skill."

Padma sniffed dismissively, "I am a serious researcher, not some garden variety slut. When I am done with my book, it will be a critical and realistic comparison of world culture, not a how-to guide for young witches. Besides no matter what those boys say I know for a fact she was still a virgin at the end of last year so she can't have done more than suck them off."

00000

Hogwarts was in for a shock, or several actually, once term started up again. Harry and Hermione not only showed unprecedented power and control in their classes but their unquestionable presence made them natural leaders. When Harry spoke students of all houses scurried to obey, much to the annoyance of the older Slytherins. Hermione's unblinking stare also gained prompt obedience of an unthinking and unquestioning nature whenever she deigned to use it. There was fire in their eyes and their footsteps caused the earth to shake. Their power did not manifest like Dumbledore's and Riddle's as a blaze of light or unquenchable fear, it was evidenced in every step and word of a force of nature.

Naturally, given their statements at the station, the rumor mill started churning with stories of Harry and Padma. Not one to be left out of the fun, she did something that shrouded her in an aura of seduction like that of a veela. Pavarti tried to imitate her sister but despite being identical in appearance she failed miserably. No matter how she or other girls sashayed their hips just so, Padma was the instant goddess of boy's dreams. Untouchable and never showing anyone favor, Padma's aloofness only added to her desirability, much to her amusement.

When the galleons grew warm at the end of September, every member of the DA ran for the Room of Requirement eager to learn the secret of such power. When they arrived, they found Harry staring at a roaring fire in an otherwise bare room. He did not acknowledge anyone and didn't move until the last member had entered the room.

When he turned around everyone sucked in a breath of surprise. Harry was even less like what they remembered and oh so much more of the powerful dynamo they'd seen the last few weeks. He didn't bother with introductions or small talk, he just jumped right in, "I'm going to make you all a unique offer unlike anything that has ever been offered before. I look around this room and I see the best and brightest minds of our generation, some of the finest examples of witches and wizards ever born but as you are you cannot reach that potential. You do not know it but you are all slaves, blundering about half asleep. I can wake you up and set you free but you must trust me."

"I'm no one's slave," Zacharias Smith protested. "I don't care that you think you're some kind of hot shot now, you can't just tell us to trust you if you won't tell us why."

"Then leave, I won't tell you anything you don't want to know," Harry flicked his wand and a red beam thick as a tea saucer blasted him into unconsciousness. Another spell levitated the disagreeable Hufflepuff into the hallway and away from the meeting. "Each and every one of you have the power to change the world if you'll only reach out and take it. I can show you how to wield the power of the gods, but you must want it. I can show you the strength to make the Dark Lord back down and Dumbledore sheath his wand, but you have to trust me implicitly. If you have even the slightest doubt about whether or not you want that power, leave now. If you think I am not the one to lead you, leave now."

The DA squirmed uncomfortably for several minutes while they tried to decide if they wanted to be like Harry. There was something intoxicating about his presence that drew them in, but also something that scared them to their cores. Cho Chang was the first to leave, and she started a flood. Soon nearly three quarters of the original DA had left. The revelation of those who stayed surprised Harry somewhat. Padma and Hermione were still there of course but Pavarti and Lavender had been among the first out the door. Ron was looking uncomfortable but he stayed, Harry didn't know how long he would last but promised himself he'd try to help his friend. Neville stared back at him with a fierce determination and Harry knew who would become his Right Hand. Luna didn't seem to be paying attention but there was something in her eyes that showed she too was half way down his path without his help. Anthony Goldstein and Colin Creevy rounded out the new group.

"Before we get started, there are just a few simple rules. No questions, no excuses, no lies, and you have to trust me. You question my methods, you're gone. Make excuses instead of actually trying your hardest, you're gone. Lie to me, you're gone. I'm going to ask you to do some really hard things and you're not going to like them. In fact you're going to hate it. You're going to hate me and everything I stand for, but if you can trust me, trust that I know what I'm doing, then I can promise you'll see results." Harry pointed to Ron, "Who do you serve?"

"I serve Dumbledore and the side of Light!" Ron told him proudly.

"Then you will fail. You," Harry pointed to Creevy before anyone could protest, "who do you serve?"

"I'll follow you to hell and back Harry, just tell me what to do."

"Then you will die. Luna, who do you serve?"

The blonde girl cocked her head to the side and thought about it for a moment. "I'm not sure I serve anyone. I don't want Voldemort to kill me but I don't really think the Ministry or Dumbledore have all the answers."

Harry nodded and turned back to the others. "Blindly following anyone, whether it's Dumbledore, the Ministry, Voldemort, or even me, will get you killed. If you want to follow them I won't stop you but if you do not think for yourself you will die without ever achieving your full potential. I have not reached my full potential yet but I'm growing more powerful with every day that goes by."

Harry could see that some were able to understand but others, like Ron and Colin were having trouble with a concept that conflicted with everything they'd ever known. Padma and Hermione just nodded and Luna seemed to get it but decided to try again for the rest, "Question everything. Why should you listen to Dumbledore? He's a powerful wizard, he defeated Grindlewald many years ago, and he is the Headmaster, but just what has he ever done to earn your loyalty? What about the Ministry? Yes, they write the laws, but who gave them that power? Is it the Divine Right of Kings handed down from on high? Even if it is, why do you have to listen? I've already told you not to blindly follow me, but I've also told you that you had to trust me. Why should you? Because I am offering to give you something in return. I don't demand it, you're free to leave, free to learn some other way. That's the first thing I can give you, your freedom."

"But how do we know that you're right and they're wrong?" Ron asked.

"You don't. This is one of those time you have to trust me," Harry pulled out a stack of envelopes from inside his robes. "I have some homework for you all. Take one and I'll see you Sunday morning."

00000

The next week was more interesting and chaotic than it had any reason to be. Harry's homework assignments had been very simple, provoke authority and then refuse to recognize its power. Everyone had handled it a bit differently however and Harry had to smirk as he saw what he'd unintentionally wrought. Ron chose to do his publicly and the results were astonishing.

In the middle of dinner on Wednesday, he'd marched up to the head table and thrown Snape's wine in his face. When the professor had jumped from his seat, Ron got him with a solid kick to the groin. All without saying a word and then he walked back to his seat and resumed his meal. Naturally the other Professors weren't taking this lying down and he was docked many points and assigned several detentions. He ignored their demands for an explanation and threats of expulsion with some difficulty but Harry had to admit he was trying.

Back in the Common Room, Ron cracked the largest smile anyone could remember seeing him use, "Harry that was awesome, I can't believe I got away with it. That was definitely worth the detention!"

"Are you actually planning on serving those?" Harry cocked his eyebrow at his friend.

"Well, yeah," Ron just shrugged, "I kind of have to don't I? At least it was worth it, unlike Hermione's forbidden library books."

"But what happens if you just don't show up?"

"For every one you miss you get two more." Ron reminded him as if he were a bit slow.

"And if you skip those too?" Harry pointed out. "Unless you don't mind eventually being expelled I wouldn't make a habit of nailing Snape in the goolies, but the point of this exercise was that authority figures only have as much power as you give them. Come to think of it, I wonder what would happen if they expelled you and you showed up for classes the next morning anyway. Could be interesting."

Light dawned in Ron's eyes when he finally saw what Harry was trying to show him, "We're free... That's what you meant isn't it? We thought we were free before but we still let everyone give us orders and we obeyed them without thinking."

"Exactly," Harry patted his friend on the shoulder, "You're free to do whatever you want. You have a choice, you can let other's run your life or you can do it yourself. Just be prepared to accept the consequences of your actions, whether it's dirty looks from your classmates or Aurors knocking on your door."

00000

Dumbledore was not happy when Harry finally came to his office for their little "chat". He'd tried everything short of physically dragging the wayward Gryffindor in to get him to talk, and the dragging option was fast becoming more likely, when on the last day of September he heard a knock on his office door.

"Enter," he called, "Ah, Mister Potter how good of you to finally join me. I understand you've been busy lately."

"Is that a question about the happenings of the last week or a cleverly worded way of saying I've been avoiding you?" Harry smirked as he took an unoffered lemon drop. "I'll just say I haven't been sitting around with nothing to do."

"By all means, help yourself," Dumbledore smiled a little too brightly as he pushed the candy bowl across the desk. "Now I would like to hear about how you spent your summer. You gave us all a real scare when you disappeared like you did."

"The candy is laced with something isn't it?" Harry mused out loud. He tried a few obvious lies and only succeeded in making gurgling noises. "Hmm, a mild truth potion? Interesting. So what happens if I decide I don't want to answer all your questions?"

Dumbledore didn't miss a beat, "I'm sorry to say it isn't optional Harry."

"Everything's optional, I just want to know what horribly unspeakable things will happen if I don't do as you say."

Dumbledore sighed dramatically and tried to be patient, "I don't think you realize just how important you are to some people."

"Actually I think I do," Harry smirked again. "In fact to show how much I care about their hope I think I'll tell you some of it anyway."

The Headmaster perked up a bit, "Where would you like to start?"

"Well I assume the Aurors are still after you to let them speak to Padma?"

"Yes, it has been most problematic to keep putting them off, but I have no reason to believe she would actually involve herself with criminal activity like arson."

Harry smiled as he leaned back in the chair. "They're wasting their time. I burned down the Prophet. Padma was just another victim and I had to kidnap her to keep her from talking."

"What?" Dumbledore nearly shot out of his seat.

"You heard me, I did it," Harry got up and walked to the door. "It's just too bad that you all need me more than I need you isn't it? You won't be telling the Aurors. I can hardly defeat Voldemort from inside Azkaban after all. Have a nice day Headmaster..."


End file.
